On a side note, I think it's time I dumped HBO and got Showtime instead. They seem to have better originals these days. HBO just keeps running the same ancient episodes of "Real Sex" over and over and over again. I mean ancient. I'm pretty sure that in one of the street interviews I saw some Dutch settlers in the background buying Manhattan from the local Injuns.

BROTHERHOODShowtime

WHAT IT'S ABOUTMob life and local politics collide, as Irish-American brothers Michael and Tommy Caffee (Jason Isaacs and Jason Clarke) battle over turf in the fictional Hill neighborhood of Providence. At its peak in season 2, only 651,000 viewers tuned in.

BEST SCENE YOU'VE MISSEDTortured detective Declan Giggs (Ethan Embry) gives his dashboard a beating after finally standing up for himself and being subsequently demoted to traffic cop.

YOUR EXCUSEAfter The Sopranos, who needs another Mob drama?

WHY YOU'RE WRONGBrotherhood is everything you loved about The Sopranos, only with dirty politics and the sort of unrestrained, raw violence not even HBO would show. Imagine if The Departed were a 10-episode drama.

WHERE YOU CAN FIND ITBrotherhood Season 1 is available on DVD, and season 2 is on Showtime On Demand. —Shirley Halperin

REAPERThe CW

WHAT IT'S ABOUTSam (Bret Harrison) is a hardware-store clerk whose eternal ass is owned by the devil (Ray Wise). Working with buddy Sock (Tyler Labine), Sam nabs damned souls and sends them back to Hades. It's a dude's version of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, watched by even fewer people: 2.6 million.

BEST SCENE YOU'VE MISSEDThe premise-establishing moment in the LOL pilot between Sam and his soul-selling father, which walks a tonal tightrope between hysterical and touching.

YOUR EXCUSEToo formulaic. Not enough mythology. Oh, and because it's on the freaking CW.

WHY YOU'RE WRONGThe cast rocks. The wit is wicked. And recent episodes have shattered the escaped-soul-of-the-week mold with a riotous arc about gay demons conspiring to dethrone Satan.

WHERE YOU CAN FIND ITReaper Season 1 is available for download on iTunes.—Jeff Jensen

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTSNBC

WHAT IT'S ABOUTThe action centers on a high school football team, led by the intense Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler), in small-town Dillon, Tex. At home, Coach's spirited wife Tami (Connie Britton) and their emotional daughter Julie (Aimee Teegarden) are often at odds. All 6.2 million fans rejoiced when NBC joined forces with DirecTV to give FNL a third season.

BEST SCENE YOU'VE MISSEDCoach tells his newly pregnant wife that he'll give up the plum college job in Austin he just landed. She insists that he pursue his dream — while she keeps her job in Dillon.

YOUR EXCUSE''I don't like football.''

WHY YOU'RE WRONGThis relationship drama spends more time off the field than on it, tackling issues of family, community, and race.

WHERE YOU CAN FIND ITSeasons 1 and 2 are available on NBC.com.—Dan Snierson

BREAKING BADAMC

WHAT IT'S ABOUTAfter discovering he has cancer, high school chemistry teacher Walter White (Bryan Cranston) partners with a former student (Aaron Paul) on a lucrative side business: making methamphetamine (a.k.a. crystal meth).

BEST SCENE YOU'VE MISSEDWearing nothing but tighty-whities and an apron in a remote stretch of New Mexico desert, White cooks up a batch of crystal, then trashes the mobile meth lab while trying to fend off rival dealers — all within the first episode.

YOUR EXCUSEPerhaps you think the dad from "Malcolm in the Middle" can't do drama.

WHY YOU'RE WRONGBad embraces several TV taboos, including drug use and spine-curling barbarity. But once the shock wears off, Cranston's stellar performance and the unpredictable story lines leave you jonesing for more.

WHERE YOU CAN FIND ITBreaking Bad Season 1 is available for download on iTunes.—Shirley Halperin

THE PAPERMTV

WHAT IT'S ABOUTA reality soap chronicling the chaos behind the school newspaper at Cypress Bay High School in Weston, Fla. Though it was paired with the highly rated Hills, it averaged only 1.3 million viewers.

BEST SCENE YOU'VE MISSEDA disastrous editors' meeting (most staffers are at odds with quirky editor in chief Amanda) culminates with histrionic advertising manager Adam pitching a shrieky fit and storming out of the classroom.

YOUR EXCUSEWhat could possibly be interesting about hormone-addled teens arguing over a school paper?

WHY YOU'RE WRONGIt's a teen show with substance. Led by Amanda and her endearing personality tics (sample quote: ''Procrastination is a foe that I have not met yet''), the staff is filled with real, engaging characters.

WHERE YOU CAN FIND ITFull episodes are on mtv.com/overdrive.—Lindsay Soll

"Crazy Mean Baby" was an internet phenomenon a couple of years ago that I somehow missed. Much like the Tourist Of Death, one funny photo launched an online frenzy of even funnier variations like the ones that follow. See the vid at the end of the post for even more.

Audio from an actual call to the syndicated radio show, "Loveline," hosted by Dr. Drew Pinsky and comedian Adam Carolla. Like its TV counterpart, the radio show fields questions about sex. Most are very frank, and some, like this one, are hilarious. Actor Tom Arnold is a guest host with Drew and Adam on this particular show.

Two caveats: the call is a bit long -- about 6 mins -- and some of the comments are potentially offensive.